Alright, so im looking for a definition of something in game, I have had a look in the rule book, tried looking for a glossary of terms or anything to answer this question before posting and it is something that I cannot seem to find a definition or meaning to, it is just a term the game likes to use every now and then, So forgive me if I am blind and missed it or I am a total noob.

Can someone define the term " Encounter "

It may seem obvious to some if not all of you but here is why I ask, there is a talent called "Second Chances" and it states that once per encounter a player may re-roll a number of positive dice equal to ranks in Second Chances. Now re-rolling positive dice that seem to not be doing any good seems to be a awesome benefit (especially if one of those were a blank dice). But before I go investing into that tree I wanted to know the limitations of it.

Is it just for combat encountering an enemy, or is it able to be used for other things and often during a session like encountering a task to be done, for an example, go into combat and use the second chances talent once (combat encounter done) then the enemy surrenders and you offer medical aid (use second chances again as the combat encounter is over), later on negotiate a better price on selling some loot (use it again to help ensure a better deal)

Also while im asking maybe a good idea to clarify other terms and check my understanding (working my way from my understanding of the top down)

Campaign: The continuing story containing the character(s) you and your friends have and the events they have been through.

Adventure : A mission or goal for PCs that the GM has chosen or made for them.

Chapter: Parts of a adventure to break it up possibly each with a different goal and or setting (go to this planet to get this then go to that planet and use that to do this then come back here and give me whatever) exp and sometimes credits normally awarded after a chapter (but its up to the GM).

Session: Each time your group gets together to play. Depending on size of chapter or even adventure could be multiple sessions over a chapter or even multiple chapters over a session (if your group is quick)

Encounter: I think it goes here, A event happens or PC/NPC wants to do something maybe even do a skill check i.e. i want to go into combat or I want to sneak past this guy.

Round: a ordered structure of turns commenced by PCs and NPCs.

Turn: an opportunity for a character to act.

Action: Incidentals, Maneuvers, Skill checks.

Feel free to correct anything (ill edit below this part here with any corrected information.)

An encounter is a varying period of time where an event takes place. The beta term used was "scene," so if you can picture a scene from the movies, that's an encounter. For example, the entirety of a fight, from beginning to end, counts as a single encounter (usually). Investigating the scene of a murder, crossing a wilderness, negotiating the purchase of a starship, etcetera, all count as encounters. If you have the beginner games adventures, you can see how they divide the adventures into individual encounters.

Sounds like you got most of them. Encounter is probably the hardest of the lot to define, and Blackbird has the right of it. A combat from start to finish is an encounter (it starts when you roll for initiative and ends when you stop taking turns) and is probably the easiest to define, but is also a journey across the wilderness, a stealth sequence involving the players sneaking into the base to get to the Death Star plans, etc. One good way of thinking of it is that an encounter is when the players are trying to accomplish a specific goal at a specific place.

I think you got those mostly right, but Actions are usually skill checks, while Maneuvers are things like moving around, drawing a weapon, aiming etc. and Incidentals are very minor things like dropping what you are holding, or saying something insignificant. All three of these are things you can do in your turn.

Defining encounter can be hard sometimes, but in the narrative style of the game, I like to think of it as a scene in a movie. Is there a cut, or a major change of pace? Then that's a new encounter for you. An easy example are combat encounters: You encounter a bunch of bad guys and fight them. When the fight is over, the encounter is over, and whatever comes next, whether it's a chase, exploring, talking or something else, can be part of a new encounter.

Keep in mind that the transitions between encounters are subtle sometimes: Say the PCs are exploring a dungeon. If they rush through it and finish within half an hour, then maybe the whole dungeon can be seen as one encounter. If they take their time, and spend an hour in each room, disarming traps, searching for loot or defeating monsters, then each room could be seen as its own encounter.

In some games, a "chapter" is also called an "act". One term that is missing from your list is "story arc". This comprises several connected "chapters/acts" (usually 3-4), each of which form part of a larger story (adventure). The original SW trilogy (ANH, ESB, RotJ) form a story arc (as do the three prequel movies). In episodic TV, a story arc can be anywhere from 2-3 episodes to as many as 6-7 (and sometimes even more, and sometimes spread over more than one season and/or with non-arc episodes mixed in between).

alright so the gamblers once per encounter "second chances" thing can be very handy and used quite often then =)

thanks for the confirmation guys

OKay to help you understand what an encounter is I've copied the definition for the word Encounter from Merriam Webster

Encounter

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After all, this is the word being used to describe the RPG event.

So, in short, when a PC('s) come across and start interacting with a plot element or device (the squad of Stormtroopers, the Imperial Customs Inspector, a local Merchant, a locked door, a broken down droid, a stand alone computer terminal in an empty room, the blind begger reciting Irish limericks) that defines the beginning of a new encounter.

And of course, encounters end once the plot device conflict has been resolved by the PCs.

So yeah; Second Changes is incredibly handy!

I've always classified an encounter as any segment of the game that if this were a Star Wars movie, would be book-ended by a screen wipe of some sort (and I even narrate the screen wipes when I GM, I literally say "And as the meeting at the cantina concludes, a clock wipe occurs and we find our heroes approaching the First Imperial Bank on Courscant"). Not merely cuts between shots, but clearly denoted passage of time where nothing of interest happens.

It should be pointed out, wipes are a pretty common technique used visually in Star Wars, and make for an excellent way to make the game feel like the movies.

Also, I would say this question is by no means embarrassing. Building a good understanding of how to frame encounters and most effectively leverage the rules you're using to allow for the most entertaining level of play is quite fundamental in GM'ing any RPG, and of particular importance in the FFG Star Wars system.

Encounters are part of structured gameplay in the game.

Structured gameplay events ( also called encounters ) such as combat follow these steps. *bold is mine*

The simplest way to define it, if initiative has been rolled it's an encounter, that's typically combat, but doesn't have to be solely combat. You could have a high stakes social encounter, like a hostage negotiation or BS-ing your way past a command ship, you could have a time critical slicing scenario, etc.

The website The Angry GM has a great series of articles on running a game, including several on encounter design . While most of his examples are fantasy-themed, there's no reason you can't apply the underlying theory to the FFG system.

Personally, I find the screen wipe to be a great designator of a new encounter. For me, any time the group (or an individual) finds themselves in a new situation, where they're bringing a new skill-set to bear, then it's new encounter. An example might be a party traveling overland, which could involve Survival and/or Navigation or Piloting (Planetary) checks if the environment is particularly strenuous. Along the way they find some ruins. If the party bypasses the ruins and continues toward their destination, then it remains part of the ongoing encounter. If they choose to investigate, then now we're looking at Perception, maybe Vigilance or Cool if the ruin is occupied, Resilience or Coordination if the ruin is crumbling, maybe Stealth or Knowledge skills for reconnaissance, etc. which means a new encounter has started. If you move into structured time, you could designate that as another new encounter, but I'd probably regard it as part of the "ruins" encounter.